Regional meeting seeks to accelerate agricultural transformation in Africa

Business a.m

This week, Regional Economic Communities (RECs) in Africa will meet to discuss the proposed Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs), which aim to boost regional trade in agricultural commodities, increase local processing of key agricultural products, and reduce food imports. The meeting, supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), will take place from October 18 to 21, 2023 at the COMESA headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia.

A wide range of partners, including the African Union Commission, the African Union Development Agency, the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, the Food and Agriculture Organization, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, the Pan-African Agribusiness Chamber, the Pan-African Farmers Organization, the Africa Business Council, the International Food Policy Research Institute, the African Continental Free Trade Area, the African Export-Import Bank, the African Development Bank, and the CAAPs Secretariat hosted by the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa, will participate in the meeting.

The benefits of agro-industrialization for the continent were widely discussed at the Third Ordinary Session of the Specialized Technical Committee (STC) on Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment in October 2019, leading to the adoption of the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme as a flagship initiative of the African Union Agenda 2063. The initiative was ratified by the African Union at its 36th Summit in February 2023. It is seen as a key contribution to the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The CAAPs initiative aims to create large agro-industrial hubs across Africa that cross national borders, falling within the Comprehensive African Agricultural Programme (CAADP) framework and the African Union Agenda 2063. The overarching goal is to drive the industrialization strategy of African governments and Regional Economic Communities, transforming economies from raw material exporters to agro-industrial powerhouses.

Despite Africa’s abundant fertile land and a burgeoning young workforce, the continent spends approximately $50 billion annually importing food commodities.

The CAAPs programme seeks to reverse this trend by promoting cross-border agriculture value chains, attracting private sector investments in agro-industrialization, and establishing sustainable cross-border policies within the context of the African Continental Free-Trade Area (AfCFTA).

The directors of RECs and CAAPs-TWG experts will meet for four days to strengthen collaboration, build synergies, and develop actions to accelerate the implementation of the CAAPs initiative. This will involve raising awareness about CAAPs, seeking feedback on the process, identifying necessary infrastructure and governance models, and identifying the AfCFTA instruments that will create a conducive environment for cross-border PPPs in CAAPs. This will support the development of the agricultural sector, create jobs, and boost trade in Africa.

The directors and experts will also discuss mapping the future of agro-industrial development in Africa, using the case study of the ZimZam CAAPs location. They will propose locations for the 10 CAAPs Demonstration Projects and the 5 larger CAAPs envisioned by the African Union. They will also harmonize the process of engaging RECs with countries and stakeholders in their respective regions, including the private sector and regional banks, to prepare for CAAP implementation.